The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1887-10-13
FOLLOWING THE FAIR.
FAKIRs WHO LIVE ON THE CREDU.
LITY OF THE PEOPLE.
Cane and Lemonade Men Who Make Small
Fortunes from the Rustics who Come to
See the Races-Their Varied Attractions
Mystery OF Their Habits Of Living.
tCopri0hted, ls67.l

the AGRICULTURAL eXnlDltlOn, tne nOmduS,
who "follow the fairs" begin to arrive.
From every train descend men with
almost every possible variety of bag
gage, but all intent upon the one object
of making financial hay while the sun
shines. Their hayfields are the amuse-
ment seekers who come to wonder at
the big pumpkins and bet on the pie
bald PAGERS, and their harvesting ma
chinery is the various devices concealed
in their diversified baggage.
Not alone do they come by cars, but
also in buggies, "prairie schooners" and
on sulkies.
The professional fair followers are
good deal like the scriptural description
of the wind: "Thou nearest the sound
thereof, but canst not tell whence it
cometh." Where the most of them re-
side and how they busy themselves dur
ing the major portion of the year when
there are no fairs are still unsolved
mysteries. When the fairs of the West
begin they appear, and at the end of the
fair season they disappear, only to bob
up serenely next year.
They are divided into two great classes,
the "straights" and Crooks" These are
subdivided into almost innumerable
smaller classes. From the "straights,"
the investor receives something for his
money, while the "crooked fakes" give
him no return unless it be in experience.
The methods of the ''straights" and
"crooks" may not always be in strict ac-
cord with the golden rule, but the noise,
excitement, hustle and hustle and great
deal of amusement of the Western fairs
are due to them, and fairs without the
"fair followers" would be spiritless and
tame. But for them the races would be
limited, except on the tracks of the
wealthy associations. The premiums
given by the poorer, and that means the
majority of the border fair organizations,
are not liberal. So, but for the opportu-
mites for rich harvests of bets that the
followers industriously gather, they would
never bring their racers. The result
would be ruin for the fair, for fair in
Kansas without races would be but slimly
attended.
The "cane rack" is dying out as a
means of wooing the hard. earned dimes
from the pockets of the youthful yeomen.
But the time was when the rack" was
the first thing the lads visited and the
last thing they left. Ten cents pur-
chased the chance to throw eight rings
at small forest of canes stuck through
holes in a canvas or net. A man could
throw ring over a cane about as easy
as he could fly, and it is needless to add
that the owner gathered in many dime
and parted with but few canes. The
dispensing of alleged lemonade was
always very remunerative; but when some
genius invented the "all-yer-can-drink-
for-fve-cents" scheme, he doomed the
industry wonderfully. No elaborate
paraphernalia is necessary. All the
vender needs is a tub to hold the lemonade,
box or barrel upon which to set the tub,
and number of dippers, hung on nails
driven around the edges of the tub. Add
to this loud voice and quantity of So
called lemonade, and, if fortune smiles,
the vender will realize an almost fabulous
per cent. of profit ON his original outlay.
To make tub of this nectar Of the
fair grounds he stirs in the water half-a-
dollars worth of sugar and twenty
cents worth of tartaric or citric acid
using whichever comes the handiest
Fifteen cents purchases large chunk Of
ice. Then, if he desires the rich color
of strawberry lemonade, he adds few
spoonfuls, say ten cents worth, of CO.
clinical. Then, twenty cents worth OF
lemons, sliced, make enough "foaters'
to make the liquid look very inviting
Then, during the day, the vender will
sell five or six tubs of this mixture, on
an average four tubs, or forty-eight gal.
Ions.
"All you kin drink fer five cents" ID
the cry, and thirsty Amos and his apple.
checked sweetheart drink from the off.
tried dippers with long, grateful gulps
and many smacks of satisfaction
Hardly any one absorbs q pint, but
put the rate at that. In forty eight
gallons there are three hundred and
eighty-four pints, which, at five cents
each, amount to $40 20; not bad return
for an investment of 81 Is. He will
really almost double this, for but few
will drink more than half q pint of his
lemonade. His tub cost dollar, and
will be used during the fair and sold al
its end for fifty cents. The barrel ID
borrowed. His license cost a dollar 9
day, and by judicious betting in small
way he expects to make enough that his
lemonade receipts are clear gain.
If economical, at the end of the fair,
he will carefully pick out his pieces oi
lemon peel or "floaters," dry them on 9
board, and carry them to the next fair
and 30 on till they finally give out from
sheer exhaustion. An experienced lem
onade man says "foaters" can be used ,
dozen times or more, II carefully han
died. The dippers are carried from towI
to town.
The taffy man does rushing business
and, by selling very long and broad bu
wondrous thin bars of his candy for iv,
cents, is able to make the modest prof
of nine dollars for one. The hard earned
dimes in the pockets Of the rural sight
seers seem ready to jump franticall,
forth and into the hand Of the loud-voicei
man, who, with praiseworthy energy ant
shocking grammar ,extols the wonders t,
be seenwithin the tent In front of which b
stands. Sometimes there are two or NOR
Of these self-styled museums, and thel
: the crowds vibrate from one to the othe
and compare the merits Of the big OF
Circassian girl, wild man, mermaid, AM
70 ON, depicted ON the paintings befoT
one show, with the snake-charmer, big
footed boy, three-horned COW and edu